chris a

AHH !!!!! I've got the hang of it : first pet :Pongo Street name : rue des Jardins hence PONGO JARDIN which sounds about right !!!!!! I wouldn't mind adding " mean and lean " as a prefix if that is ok with you lot ...

Yeh it's pretty insane isn't it ??? Harley also did the same thing on the alternator magnets . A good buddy who had spent heaps on his chop ( there is no point in questioning the taste...) had some of these magnets drop off with the result that the cluch was scrap along with gearbox shafts getting bent too...the bill was unbelievable and of course absolutly no come back or guarentee ...and you have to replace it all with the same dodgy components !!!!! At least it seems that for us it's only the valeo's that are effected ...allthough these starter motors are fitted to heaps of other vehicles and it would be surprising if it was a common problem ...maybe the old aircolled twin just heats it all up a bit too much ??? What are they fitting to the Gris/Norge etc??? Same old junk???? I'm on Bosch and have had no problems for years but when the time comes I recon I will go with the German conversion : too many valeo's seem to go wrong and they are not really that cheap...

I understood that the light grey /green was used on the 50's racers and was in fact a magnesium or alluminium primer ...guzzi were at the time at the forefront of aerodynamics as they had the windtunnel and used it to test their fairings.As they were also really conscious about weight savings , legend has it that they actually decided not to put a top coat on the factory race bikes ...hence the green primer colour .I guess they could save at least one or two kilos as simply as that !!!! The shareholders were probably also delighted by the cost savings...

Bob , have you managed to find out what has gone in the starter ??? From what I have gleamed off the net , the weak point with the valeos are the field magnets that are glued to the casing... (I mean how cheap can you get !!!!!!!!) and they eventually come adrift . At the moment there are a good few new valeo outer casings including the magnets on the guzzi listing at E bay . If that is what is wrong with your starter it may be cheaper ... I also saw somewhere that a guy in Germany has recently done an adaption kit for a Jap strarter motor for guzzies and that it is the dog's bollocks . price if I remember rightly was 200 euro ????I'm pretty sure that it was mentioned here in the past few months...

OOPPPS ... that should have been @#$$#! Chainey ... the well known american gay s and m porn star who features in " what's hiding in george's bush" as he gets anally gang raped by some dark skinned boys from the gulf.

How do you get to @#$$#! Chainey then ???!!!

Hi Tracy, it could be that the petrol tank breathing hole in the filler cap is blocked. Flip the cap open and you should see asmall breather hole which vents to the outside. Clear it with a bit of wire and it may solve your problem . I would also check the petrol tap and carb filters for crud at the same time if you havn't allready cleaned them.

Wow !! the first one put a completly new meaning to the word customisation ,,,and the other one will no doubt be replicated in great numbers by the adventure /tourer crowd !!!!!!

Here in France there is no bike emission test eithere ...and in fact no bike testing at all !!!!!!!!!!!! However we are limited to 100 horses or thereabouts depending on the manufacturer's brake performance.... don't you just love european "harmonisation "

There are also the guzzi engined " triking" three wheelers in the classic Morgan format. I think and hope they are still in production as they are really lovely little vehicles and were available in kit form for self assembly for those with either the nouse or not enough cash to get tony to do it for you. He has built over a hundred of these I think ...And yes , that two wheels first format would defiantly give you the best handling :in the sixties sidecar racing they had to seperate them from the 'proper " outfits as they were wipeing the floor useing hillman imp and mini engines. The results that the morgan boys were getting around then on the track useing old JAP v twins were also really impressive. As for what is now usually refered to as a trike.... !!!!! and i suspect that they do not handle particularely well either !!!!

Wow that is some mileage you got out of the bores !!!! Love the sidecar set up : large wheel sidecars are the only real way to go and yours looks light too . I guess the G5 is just right for chair duty appart form the forks ??? your ergonomics look a bit extream !!!!!

Nice one Gary ! still can neither make my mind up or find either that says "buy me , I'm cheap reliable and just next door to you "!!!!!!! However I am not giving up ... Chris

my first proper bike was a BSA A 65 lightning and Watsonian Monza "combination " as I did not have a full license at the time and you could ride any cc as long as you had a chair( this was in the UK ). I can tell you that you need training to ride one if you have never done anything than ride solo !!!!!!! A good few of us at the time rode larger brit bikes in this way and the rule was that unless you were exceptionally gifted or bloody lucky you would end up in a hedge within a few days ...for us trouble was remembering to accelerate into a left hander so that the bikes rear wheel pivotes around the sidecar wheel . I guess for you guys you would do it on the opposit bends. You also needed a bike with enough poke or always keep some "in reserve " but the lightning was fine ... Once mastered the combination is a really amazing vehicle especially in the wet or in snow... Did many many miles after I got my full license 'cause it was so cool but I also had a solo for getting through the trafic. A big harley should cope with a chair easely . I guess you have ample torque but the running gear will be a lot more stressed so keep on top of your maintenance.Also run proper sidecar tyres if you can.Also make sur that the side car is properly set up and sufficiantly fixed to the bike. I've gota really fab article by "Slide rule " ( I think) written in the late thirties dicussing the whole issue and it is amazing how a few degrees lean out or toe in change the whole feel of the combo. There was also an article about how to ride the things but I'm not sure if I could lay my hands on it straight away. Have fun and take it easy at first!!

Hi , the G5 is a really nice machine.As mike says it has a unique side stand which actually works well compared to LM and standard T3 types. The foot peggs are also unique to this model as they put you further forward than standard pegs but you don't get the floor boards that the cali's had which I think look hideous. It is quite possible that the liners were originall cast iron which was better than the crap chrome std to the smaller bores but nowhere near as good as nicsill wich is the biz. this bike may have them though.at the kind of money you are talking about I would say it is a really good deal depending on cosmetics (the finnish quality was not a strong point on guzzi's then either ...) and mechanicals.The price of these bikes seems to have crept up over the years as they are really reliable , very very usable and have lots of charm. Don't belive the stories about crap electrics either.... PS the other really nice thing about these is you can mix and match the bits from 30 years of production . if you like the reto early seventies look all the body work stuff is there. If you like the last ( mid 90's ) imitation Jap plastic look those parts are available too. Keeping it original and on the road shouldn't be a big deal either. Keep us posted !!!

Hi forrest, now that's definatly a bit more sensible mileage than what I read !! The roads down here are really varied as I'm just at the foothills of the Cevennes range. Go south and you have the med plaine which is getting really overcrowded nowadays but anywhere else has some of the best under 90mph scratching Ive seen plus amazing scenery . Lots of hairpins and more often than not good surfaces. The only trouble is it takes ages to get any real distance covered and that is why they built the motorway !!!! What I really need to do is get a test ride on both bikes but the local dealers don't have any v11's left and the 1000 raptor has not been imported for a while...I guess you have ridden a V11 too ... what's the comparison like in your eyes ??? Cheers chris

well that's also the strong impression I get form regularely checking in at thr raptor chaptor forum...I really like the idea of low seat hight as i'm a bit oif a shortie, I love the looks of the standad raptor ( and hate the v ...sorry !) but according to some french reviw you only get about 150km between tank fulls which to me is a bad joke: I'd allredy love to put a bigger capacity tank on the T3. I also have to admit being sadly biased against "jap " stuff . I cut my biking teath like many of may age on old brit iron due to financial reasons but also bullshit nationalistic pride. The BSA 's I had were fine at handling , looked nice but were pretty poorly engineered. The Panther slopers I then got into were a in a universe of their own...and far too far away from this one except for the hippy biker I was then ! I really regret having sold the slopers but I had debts and it was getting really hard keeping them on the road for daily use. A nice little v50 had allready taken on going to work duties and the T3 was looming.I was as hooked into guzzies as much as the panthers and the former are so much more fun to fiddle about with. Less adventure on the road but so much less hastle with spares (so far )...and amazing reliability hence my attration to the V11. How has the rap been for you . Lots of miles on it ?It seems that that is another bike that Shoud have sold heaps but didn't for some strange reason. A bit like the guzzi scenario really !!!!!!

I guess Sibbe is the place near Maastricht... v 11 rally ? I,m located just 60 km north of Montpellier so a trip accros the border to italy is much more likely.But first I need to get some wheels on the road !!!

Hi Guys, been keeping an eye on you lot for a while now and reckon it was time to " do the decent thing " and sign in ! Currently on the look out for a new ride as my only remaining machine is a venerable T3 which finally broke it's selector spring at 95,000 miles well over a year ago . Well , a full restauration had been mooted for a few years but she rode so well and I knew what an ordeal it would be .The spring braking convinced me that she had had enough and so I started to pull her to bits ...and I have regretted it ever since as I now only get around in a long wheelbase Transit which is not exactly the same hit , if any at all!! So the next stage was to find THE new bike and six months later I'm still at it ... I started off thinking a Centuro would be cool... then got into looking at cagiva raptors ... then rememberd the sport 1100's ( very nearly got one at a good price a few weeks ago in the uk and then it all went tits up!!!) ...and finally will probably finalise on a V 11 as i've allways thought they looked really nice and seem to have a lower seat and much better comfort than either the Centuro's or the 1100's. The raptor 1000 still haunts me but the ridiculously small petrol tank and their rarety put me off . Plus of course you guys have the best site by far ... used notes only in small denominations only thanks...

Keep holding out guys !!!! somehow , the french government managed to get a 100 HP cap on all bikes through and in the current climate on getting tough with anything and anybody ( except corrupt politicians which means about all of them here...) you can fined an awfull lot of money for derestricing / tuning ...possibly even get a jail sentence. Not to mention the hassels trying to import a foreign bike ...